Do You Need Pet Insurance? 5 Pros and Cons

On the surface, pet insurance sounds like a no-brainer. After all, if you have health insurance, why wouldn’t your dog? However, just like anything else these days, pet insurance is full of fine print and exclusions that could actually end up costing you more money if you are not careful about which plan you choose. In other words, depending on you and your dog’s lifestyle, pet insurance might just be a waste of money.

Start by outlining what you want covered, how much you can pay a month, and what types of injuries/illness your dog is likely to suffer during his lifetime. Then, use the following tips to help you decided whether or not pet insurance is right for you.

The Pros

1. Low Deductibles. Unlike human insurance, pet insurance for the most part has low deductibles, averaging $150-200/year, with one notable exception. TruPanion allows you to choose your deductible is based on how high of a premium you want – their deductibles can be as high as $1,000/year.

2. Free Visits. Most pet insurance plans include at least one free visit a year.

Related: Compare all the pet insurance brands in one place

3. Bonus Reimbursements. Depending on your plan and carrier, some will even reimburse you if you need to cut a vacation short, need to pay to board your pet due a family death or emergency, or if your pet dies. PetPlan has a plan such as this.

4. Serious Illnesses. Almost all plans cover injuries and serious illnesses for fairly low ($10+) monthly premiums. If you are just looking to safeguard yourself against catastrophic events, you will do well with a pet plan.

5. Choose Your Vet. Don’t worry about not being able to go to your own vet. With the exception of private plans such as Banfield’s, which only works at Banfield Pet Hospitals.

The Cons

1.  Maximum Benefits. Regardless of the plan and carrier you choose, you will be faced with a maximum benefit each year. So, if you have an accident-prone or illness laden pet, you might still find yourself footing part of the bill.

2.  Sport or Working Injuries. In most cases, these types of injuries are not covered except at the most expensive level or for an added cost. For example, with TruPanion, the premiums will run you 75% more than a non-working dog.

3. Upfront costs. Unlike human insurance where you just pay your co-pay out of pocket, pet insurance makes you pay the bill and then send it to them for reimbursement. So, even with an insurance plan you still need the money upfront.

4. Preexisting Conditions. Not surprisingly, if your dog already has a lot of conditions, the insurance ship has probably sailed for you. Better to put the money toward treatment at this point.

5. Routine care. Surprisingly, almost no plans cover routine care. If you just bought a puppy and think the best way to save money is to purchase insurance, look carefully. The AKC Pet Healthcare covers all the puppy essentials at the Wellness Plus level, which starts around $70/mo.